In the vastness of Russia there are many interesting places. Alas, most of them today are in an extremely sad state. The deindustrialization of the country is doing its job. Entire cities cease to exist across the country. One city is Igarka, the first Russian city built on permafrost. Why was it erected and what else is remarkable?
The Igarka River is one of the left tributaries of the Yenisei River. For the first time, Igarka was put on Russian maps back in the days of the Russian Empire in 1733 during the reign of Empress Anna Ioannovna. In the future, these places were not used in any way until the 20th century. In the 1920s, the Soviet leadership became interested in the prospect of mining and timber rafting along the Yenisei. For this, a new port was erected on the left bank of the river in 1929, and with it a settlement for transporting timber. The new city was named after the same tributary of the Yenisei - Igarka. Thus, in the history of Russia, the first real city appeared, built on permafrost.
Like many other young Soviet settlements, Igarka was formed at the expense of two main categories of the population. Firstly, various prisoners were sent to these places: criminal, political, war criminals. Many of them subsequently remained to live in Igarka, settling in new places and creating new families. Secondly, a significant part of the population of Igarka was formed at the expense of civilian workers who went to the construction sites of socialism both for ideological reasons and from the desire to earn money. In 1931, only 3,000 people lived in Igarka. By 1939, 23,600 people lived here. By 1959 the population dropped to 14.3 thousand, but by 1989 there were already 18.8 thousand people living here.
In 1962, a terrible tragedy happened in Igarka - a huge fire almost completely destroyed the city, which did not prevent Soviet citizens from rebuilding it. The heart of the city, of course, was the Igarsky sawmill and transshipment plant. In the 1970s, the company supplied up to 1.5 million cubic meters of lumber every year. The combine was supplied with 4 sawmills scattered around the district. As you might guess, the enterprises stopped their work after the collapse of the Soviet Union, which had the most negative impact on the life of the city and its population. So, in 2020, a little more than 4 thousand people lived in Igarka.
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The Soviet government had the biggest plans for Igarka. In addition to their own port, back in 1953, they tried to stretch a railway to the city. It also built its own airport. In the future, the city was seen as a center for the extraction of resources, not only wood, but also coal, oil and some other minerals. A local history museum was built in the village, as well as a museum of permafrost. Today, almost all production in Igarka has been curtailed, with the exception of the fact that oil is produced not far from the city at the Vankor oil and gas field (130 km from the city).
In continuation of the topic, read about how surreal sculptures were created in the most beautiful park in England.
Source: https://novate.ru/blogs/080122/61786/